Saloum

An increasingly intolerable piece of work, Saloum follows a trio of mercenaries as they’re forced to battle a supernatural force after landing in the title locale. Filmmaker Jean Luc Herbulot, armed with his own screenplay, opens the proceedings with an off-putting and mostly context-free first act that instantly sets the viewer’s teeth on edge, and there’s little doubt, certainly, that Saloum‘s emphasis on the hopelessly tedious exploits of several scarcely-developed figures is exacerbated (and then some) by Herbulot’s frenetic, frenzied directorial style. It’s not surprising, as a result, to discover that the picture eventually progresses into an underwhelming, uninvolving midsection rife with dull revelations and hackneyed double crosses, and although this section of the film is comparatively more effective than that initial stretch, Saloum‘s aggressive incompetence has long-since obliterated the viewer’s ability to work up an ounce of interest in or sympathy for the characters’ perilous activities – with the arms-length vibe ensuring that the action-packed climax, which contains so much shaky camerawork that it’s essentially incoherent, is hardly able to pack the visceral, exciting punch Herbulot has obviously intended. The final result is a mostly worthless endeavor that feels much, much longer than its 84 minutes, and it’s impossible, ultimately, not to wonder exactly what Herbulot originally set out to achieve and accomplish with this interminable mess.

1/2* out of ****